E-Cigarettes Taking Hold in Europe

Users say it's helping them cut down on tobacco

Nearly one-fifth of smokers who tried electronic cigarettes became regular users, most often in an attempt to cut down on regular cigarettes, a European survey showed.

Among those 18.3% who reported becoming regular users, 60% said the nicotine vapor devices helped them cut down on smoking tobacco, Peter Hajek, PhD, CClinPsych, of the U.K. Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies at Queen Mary University of London, and colleagues found.

That adoption rate was "remarkably high" and suggested a potential for a population-level impact on tobacco smoking, they concluded in the November issue of Chest.